In Memory of Tuesday, 1999 - 2014
“Tuesday”, who died on Wednesday, 2/19/14, gave us 15 years of
great pleasure, love and excitement. He will be sadly missed by us
(Herb & Lee) and his brother, Booga.
The Epsom Public Library will have a “Teen Movie Event” featuring
the new release “Thor: The Dark World” on Friday, March 7th at 6:15
pm. The movie is rated PG-13 and pizza and drinks will be provided.
Please call the library for more info or to sign up at 736-9920.
Epsom Youth Athletic Association will be hosting a St. Patty’s Dance
Saturday, March 15th – 7:00 pm – Midnight, located at the Epsom Elks
Lodge (upstairs) with DJ Minasalli.
For tickets or other information contact: Jenn at
[email protected].
Epsom’s Proposed New Town Offices
An informational meeting about the proposed new town offices in the
relocated meetinghouse will be held on Saturday, March 8th, from
10:00 a.m. to noon at the Epsom Public Library. Conceptual plans
and cost/savings comparisons will be available. Please plan to
attend and bring your questions about Warrant Article 1. Be an
informed voter and learn the facts! Voting will be on Tuesday,
March 11th, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Epsom Central School.
Letter To The Editor
After 3 years as a Selectman for the Town of Epsom I have decided to
not run for reelection. It has been a privilege and an honor to
serve the town over that time period and I want to take this
opportunity to thank all the people that have supported me and also
those who have stepped forward to volunteer their services in many
capacities. It is the dedication and hard work from these volunteers
that make Epsom such a great place to live.
As a result of my decision there is an open seat for Selectman that
will be contested by four candidates on Election Day. I am
enthusiastically supporting Chris Bowes in this race. Chris has
impressed me as someone who will look ahead to what is best for the
town and not fight yesterday’s battles. Chris moved to Epsom with
his family a few years ago because he feels that Epsom is a great
place to raise a family. He works as a pilot for Southwest Airlines,
a job that requires meticulous attention to details before moving
ahead. These qualities will serve the town well if he is elected.
Chris is a good listener who admits that he doesn’t have all the
answers and will be constantly seeking input from Epsom residents to
do what is best for the people of Epsom. He is a strong supporter of
bringing business to town that will provide services to residents
while at the same time lowering the tax burden on the average
homeowner. I urge you to consider Chris Bowes when you cast your
ballot on March 11th.
Thank you.
Don Harty
Epsom, NH
Letter To The Editor
Proposed Epsom Town Office
The selectmen of our town want to move the town offices to a new
location, the basement of the old church that was moved about a
quarter mile up Route 4.
Having a 30 year history of working in the building trades I thought
I might look at the costs to shed some light on the validity of the
proposed $1,068,883.00 pricetag! That seemed a ridiculous price to
renovate an existing building so I looked at the cost breakdown.
The first thing that stuck out was the cost of the
“Architect/Engineering/Contractor, $133,286. Wow, way more than 10%
of the whole cost breakdown! Are we trying to make somebody rich or
get a better place for town business?
Our neighbors in Chichester have their town offices in the basement
of a church. It seems to work for them. So, even if we elect to use
that old inefficient drafty church for this purpose, why do the
plans show all this extra space outside the footprint of the
original building? That will cost a bunch!
The plans show a huge lobby that would put most doctors’ offices to
shame! I say shrink the humongous break area and lobby and move
everything back so it fits under the original church. Honestly, do
we need to have that much more town office space? Or a deck? An
elevator? This monstrosity sounds more like the doings of the
federal government. They’re spending more than we have and living
beyond our means.
David Denoncourt
Epsom
Letter To The Editor
The Epsom Town Fathers have decided to buy a better place to
relocate the Highway Department. With no tax impact, as they
already have the funds, I support this warrant article.
The proposed site is Bob Cutter’s construction building on Black
Hall Road, with a little over 4 acres of useable land, definitely an
improvement and step in the correct direction
Respectfully submitted to All Town of Epsom Voters,
Gordon R. Ellis, Road Agent
Letter
To my constituents in Allenstown, Epsom, and Pittsfield,
This is school vacation week, and the Legislature gets the week off
as well. Here’s an update on three of my bills.
HB1300, exempting low volume seed sellers from licensing, was a
constituent request: he grew heirloom tomatoes, saved the seeds for
next year, and wanted to sell some. Being a conscientious person, he
checked with the Department of Agriculture and discovered that all
seed sellers needed a license, and to comply with the labeling and
germination requirements for grass seed sellers! So I put in an
exemption, guessing at 50 pounds of seeds as the upper limit. That’s
an awful lot of tomato seeds, but a reasonable amount of bean, pea,
or squash seeds. The committee was interested, but the department
argued for labeling and germination tests. Representatives Alan
Turcotte of Allenstown and Guy Comtois of Barnstead (a co-sponsor)
convinced the committee that the simple exemption was appropriate,
and amended the bill to only cover 25 pounds of seeds. The committee
voted unanimously to pass it as amended, and it’ll be on the consent
calendar of non-controversial bills next week.
HB1186, clarifying the rulemaking authority of some licensing boards
over the qualification tests, is also on the consent calendar from
my committee.
On the other hand, HB1437, eliminating driver’s license suspension
for underage possession of alcohol (not DWI; people of every age
lose their license for that!) was voted out of committee to be
killed, 12-6. The minority is likely to argue it on the floor, and
I’ll help.
However, that same committee was exactly split on HB1436, exemptions
to the law on underage possession, and the House failed to pass it
last week: it’s on the table now.
Interested readers can email me for my newsletter, with more details
than fit here.
Representative Carol McGuire
[email protected]
782-4918
Letter
Dear Epsom Residents,
Thank you for considering me for the position of Overseer of Public
Welfare. I appreciate the time you have taken over the last few
weeks to get to know me, ask questions, and share ideas with me. The
message I repeatedly hear is, “We care.” I feel fortunate to be part
of such a community. If elected, I will work hard to ensure that our
citizen’s needs are met in accordance with our state law and town
guidelines. The values and qualifications I would bring to this
position include:
• Master of Social Work
• Business experience – Human Resources Administration
• Community service – Library and ECS Volunteer, Alternate Library
Trustee
• I care.
• I listen.
• I collaborate.
• I will advocate for YOU.
Please remember to come out and vote on March 11 at Epsom Central
School. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Celeste Decker
Letter
Epsom Community Food Drive
Tuesday, March 11 – Town Election Day
Epsom Central School – Gym lobby
There are families in need right here in our community…and you can
do something about it.
Help your neighbors in need by donating non-perishable food items to
your community food pantry. Please bring items to the collection box
located in the ESC gym lobby on town election day. Please donate
food that you yourself would eat and that is not past its use by
date.
Epsom is currently 2nd in need of the 5 towns served by the Loudon
Food Pantry. There is an effort underway to serve the needs of Epsom
families through the Epsom Food Pantry located at the old Town Hall.
For this food drive your donations will go further to help, as they
will count towards the Feinstein Challenge to Fight Hunger.
Your generosity is greatly appreciated by your neighbors in need.
Thank you
Seth and Angela Little
Epsom Food Pantry Update
Still NO Non-Profit Status approval from the good old IRS, but even
so we are going to open for those who are NOT getting food from
Loudon. It will be on a limited basis, but we should do fairly well.
Our hours will be for now every Saturday from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
Have patience with us Epsom folks. We are doing our best.
Bring papers to show you live in Epsom and are eligible for this
supplementary food. We will be having a table on Epsom Voting day
March 11th so we will be gladly accepting food for the pantry.
Looking forward to meeting you.
Letter
To My Fellow Epsom Residents:
When my friend and neighbor Celeste Decker confided in me she was
thinking of running for Overseer of Public Welfare for our town my
words to her were “We would be so fortunate to have you helping our
residents!” I’ve known Celeste for many years and say with
confidence she will serve the folks of Epsom with the knowledge,
integrity, and compassion that embodies all her actions both
professional and personal.
Although Celeste’s professional background certainly qualifies her
for this job (Master of Social Work, extensive human resource and
social work experience) it is her caring manner, respect for the
needs of others and a strong commitment to sound business practices
that make her perfect as our town’s Welfare Administrator.
Unfortunately, there will be times where the person or family
doesn’t meet the qualifications for assistance and Celeste will
handle those situations in a way that empowers them to find
solutions for their issues.
I speak from experience when I say Epsom needs an advocate for our
neighbors who need a helping hand and not judgment. We need a
Welfare Administrator who, while following the established
guidelines, will be kind and helpful without making one feel
intimidated or overwhelmed. Celeste will work with the new, local
Epsom food pantry, our schools and other town departments to make
sure no one in our community goes without their basic needs. I am
impressed that she has already reached out to several people to find
the best way to collaborate for our friends and neighbors.
On March 11 I ask you to cast your vote for Celeste Decker for
Overseer of Public Welfare for our wonderful town!
Thank you for your time.
Susan Pagano
Letter To The Editor
PLEASE VOTE “YES” ON ARTICLE 1
MARCH 11, 2014 is voting day for town business. As you probably
know, Article 1 is for bond issue to renovate Meeting House into
Town Offices on ground floor and main floor as meeting space for
Board of Selectmen and other town business. It also expands library
parking and brings utilities and septic to site.
The Town Center Project will include the new library, the historic
meeting house (Town Offices) as well as plans for the old Town Hall
to serve as Epsom’s food pantry. It is centrally located. The
Community Center will be a place for young, old and in between to
cross paths.
2012 the town voted overwhelmingly to use Meeting House for Town
Offices. 2014 we are paying $36,288.00 rent to the strip mall with a
projected annual increase of 3%. I believe Article 1 is the answer
to so many problems.
Just a note in closing, printing of signs, mailings and all other
expenses involved in getting Article 1 to the ballot has come from
volunteers. Thank you for your consideration.
Nancy Heath
Epsom
Letter To The Editor
Want VS. Needs – Epsom Meetinghouse Article 1
It amazes me what people want, and to think of all the things we
have already. Then I look around and see the people who need.
People need extra wood pellets, or a tank of oil to heat their
homes this year. People need another $10 a week to put food on
their tables to buy the basics such as milk, bread.
Most everyone’s health insurance premiums are going up, as we need
this. Gas, never seems to stay cheap, and tax on it will go up. A
crisis here, a storm there, and we need to keep spending more it
seems every day to put gas in the car, to go to work, to provide for
our needs, provide for our families, to get that paycheck to do
those things we need.
So the question comes down to this for me when it comes to the Old
Meetinghouse and Article 1. Do I want a new town hall? Sure, would
be nice. But is it needed?
The $1.068 Million dollar price tag they need to finish is a lot and
the potential tax impact for the next 10 years was sent in a recent
flier. We aren’t hearing about all the money the town
will need to spend to heat it, upkeep and maintenance it will need.
It will need insulated. It will need annual maintenance.
I want people to think about what we want, and the things we need.
The Meeting House needs more than what this town and it’s citizens
can afford through taxing it’s citizens for this un-needed town
hall. We need to not keep putting this up for a vote year after
year.
Vote No on Epsom Article 1.
Thank you,
Epsom Citizen
Obituaries
Barbara E Briggs
Barbara E Briggs, 74, of Suncook Valley Highway, died February 23rd
at the Concord Hospice House peacefully surrounded by her family.
She was born in Alton, January 6th 1940, the daughter of Herbert and
Annie Seldon. She was a lifelong resident of Epsom and was a
graduate of Pembroke Academy, class of 1958.
She worked for Huckins Oil Co. for many years. She also worked as a
switch board operator and a receptionist for the Merrimack County
Savings Bank for many years retiring in 2005.
She was an compassionate animal lover and was very attached to
Basset Hounds.
Barbara and her husband Ron belonged to the Winnebago Club of NH and
enjoyed traveling with many friends. She also enjoyed attending
many horse shows to watch her granddaughter, Amanda, show her
horses.
She had many hobbies, a creative mind and a kind heart. She was an
avid “Annalee” Doll collector.
She is survived by her husband of 54 years, Ronald Briggs, a
daughter Sandy Briggs-Kelley and her husband Jefferson,a
granddaughter, Amanda Duquette and her husband Christopher, all of
Epsom.
There are no visiting hours. A private urn burial will be held in
the spring in the Floral Park Cemetery, Pittsfield.
Donations in her memory may be made to the “Clients in Need Fund”
C/O Deerfield Veterinary Clinic, 150 South Road,
Deerfield, NH 03037. The Perkins & Pollard Memorial Home,
Pittsfield, is assisting the family with arrangements.
To sign an online guest book, log on to
perkisnandpollard.com
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